Differential Item Functioning Effect Size Use for Validity Information.

There has been an emphasis on effect sizes for differential item functioning (DIF) with the purpose to understand the magnitude of the differences that are detected through statistical significance testing. Several different effect sizes have been suggested that correspond to the method used for analysis, as have different guidelines for interpretation. The purpose of this simulation study was to compare the performance of the DIF effect size measures described for quantifying and comparing the amount of DIF in two assessments.

Comparing reported management of ureteric stones between clinical audit and administrative datasets: An opportunity to streamline clinical audit.

Objectives: To compare recorded patient management between a clinical audit and administrative dataset for patients presenting with ureteric stones in England and to assess the feasibility of using administrative data for routine audit.

Patients And Methods: The British Association of Urological Surgeons conducted a clinical audit of all patients presenting as an emergency to 107 hospitals in England during November 2020 with ureteric stones. All patients were followed up until 31st March 2021 and in-patient and out-patient management received recorded.

Creation of a Novel Ex Vivo 3D Printed Ileal Conduit Task Trainer for Teaching Conduitoscopy Skills.

Objective: To perform endoscopy in patients with urinary diversions requires specific endoscopic skills, which can currently only be gained in clinical practice. We created a 3D-printed ex vivo ileal conduit model (stoma and conduit with ureters and 2 kidneys) to simulate "conduitoscopy" and evaluated the realism and limitations of the model.

Methods: Accurate anatomical features were represented using an appropriate reusable design, realistic mechanical qualities with several material types, and 3D-printed components.

Nothing means anything if everything means something: exploring the issues of coping profiles and the person-centered approach.

Background: Adopting a person-centered approach to coping potentially allows researchers to explore the multifaceted nature of the construct. However, this increasingly adopted approach also has limitations. Namely, employing cluster or latent profile analysis to investigate coping through a person-centered lens often brings a lack of generalizability and subjectivity in interpreting the generated profiles.

Dominance Analysis for Latent Variable Models: A Comparison of Methods With Categorical Indicators and Misspecified Models.

Dominance analysis (DA) is a very useful tool for ordering independent variables in a regression model based on their relative importance in explaining variance in the dependent variable. This approach, which was originally described by Budescu, has recently been extended to use with structural equation models examining relationships among latent variables. Research demonstrated that this approach yields accurate results for latent variable models involving normally distributed indicator variables and correctly specified models.

NASA SPRINT exercise program efficacy for vastus lateralis and soleus skeletal muscle health during 70 days of simulated microgravity.

The efficacy of the NASA SPRINT exercise countermeasures program for quadriceps (vastus lateralis) and triceps surae (soleus) skeletal muscle health was investigated during 70 days of simulated microgravity. Individuals completed 6° head-down-tilt bedrest (BR, = 9), bedrest with resistance and aerobic exercise (BRE, = 9), or bedrest with resistance and aerobic exercise and low-dose testosterone (BRE + T, = 8). All groups were periodically tested for muscle ( = 9 times) and aerobic ( = 4 times) power during bedrest.

The Impact and Detection of Uniform Differential Item Functioning for Continuous Item Response Models.

Psychometricians have devoted much research and attention to categorical item responses, leading to the development and widespread use of item response theory for the estimation of model parameters and identification of items that do not perform in the same way for examinees from different population subgroups (e.g., differential item functioning [DIF]).

Fixed Effects or Mixed Effects Classifiers? Evidence From Simulated and Archival Data.

This study seeks to compare fixed and mixed effects models for the purposes of predictive classification in the presence of multilevel data. The first part of the study utilizes a Monte Carlo simulation to compare fixed and mixed effects logistic regression and random forests. An applied examination of the prediction of student retention in the public-use U.

Influence of aspirin on aging skeletal muscle: Insights from a cross-sectional cohort of septuagenarians.

Aspirin is one of the most commonly consumed cyclooxygenase (COX)-inhibitors and anti-inflammatory drugs and has been shown to block COX-produced regulators of inflammation and aging skeletal muscle size. We used propensity score matching to compare skeletal muscle characteristics of individuals from the Health ABC study that did not consume aspirin or any other COX-inhibiting drugs (non-consumers, n = 497, 74 ± 3 year, 168 ± 9 cm, 75.1 ± 13.

A Comparison of Confirmatory Factor Analysis and Network Models for Measurement Invariance Assessment When Indicator Residuals are Correlated.

Social science research is heavily dependent on the use of standardized assessments of a variety of phenomena, such as mood, executive functioning, and cognitive ability. An important assumption when using these instruments is that they perform similarly for all members of the population. When this assumption is violated, the validity evidence of the scores is called into question.

Enabling national improvement in quality of care for renal colic.

Objectives: To report the results of a clinical audit conducted by the British Association of Urological Surgeons (BAUS) of ureteric stone care pathways, with results reported with reference to national quality standards.

Patients And Methods: The BAUS conducted a clinical audit of all patients presenting as an emergency to 107 hospitals in England during November 2020 with ureteric stones. All patients were followed up until 31 March 2021 and the inpatient and outpatient management received was recorded.

A Prospective Multi-Institutional Evaluation of Iatrogenic Urethral Catheterization Injuries.

Objectives: To perform a multi-institutional investigation of incidence and outcomes of urethral trauma sustained during attempted catheterization.

Patients & Methods: A prospective, multi-center study was conducted over a designated 3-4 month period, incorporating seven academic hospitals across the UK and Ireland. Cases of urethral trauma arising from attempted catheterization were recorded.

Associations Between Active Commuting and Cardiovascular Disease in the United States.

Background: Active commuting is inversely related with cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors yet associations with CVD prevalence in the US population are unknown.

Methods: Aggregate data from national surveys conducted in 2017 provided state-level percentages of adults who have/had coronary heart disease, myocardial infarction, and stroke, and who actively commuted to work. Associations between active commuting and CVD prevalence rates were assessed using Pearson correlations and generalized additive models controlling for covariates.

Prediction With Mixed Effects Models: A Monte Carlo Simulation Study.

Oftentimes in many fields of the social and natural sciences, data are obtained within a nested structure (e.g., students within schools).

Efficacy and safety of the EMS Swiss LithoClast® Trilogy for PCNL: results of the European multicentre prospective study on behalf of European Section of UroTechnology.

Purpose: PCNL requires a lithotrite to efficiently break stones, and some devices include active suction to remove the fragments. We set out to determine the efficacy and safety of the Swiss LithoClast® Trilogy, in a prospective European multicentre evaluation and compared it to published stone clearance rates for Trilogy based on surface area (68.9 mm/min) and using the 3D calculated stone volume (526.

Poverty and Covid-19: Rates of Incidence and Deaths in the United States During the First 10 Weeks of the Pandemic.

The Covid-19 pandemic in the winter and spring of 2020 represents a major challenge to the world health care system that has not been seen perhaps since the influenza pandemic in 1918. The virus has spread across the world, claiming lives on all continents with the exception of Antarctica. Since its arrival in the United States, attention has been paid to how Covid-19 cases and deaths have been distributed across varying socioeconomic and ethnic groups.

Radiation-Induced Vascular Disease-A State-of-the-Art Review.

Since the 1990s, there has been a steady increase in the number of cancer survivors to an estimated 17 million in 2019 in the US alone. Radiation therapy today is applied to a variety of malignancies and over 50% of cancer patients. The effects of ionizing radiation on cardiac structure and function, so-called radiation-induced heart disease (RIHD), have been extensively studied.

HoLEP for acute and non-neurogenic chronic urinary retention: how effective is it?

Purpose: To determine catheter status within 3 months of holmium laser enucleation of the prostate (HoLEP) for acute and non-neurogenic chronic urinary retention (AUR and NNCUR), to compare short-term outcomes of HoLEP for urinary retention (UR) versus lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS), and to report long-term serum creatinine (SC) after HoLEP for high-pressure chronic urinary retention (HPCUR).

Methods: A prospectively maintained database of the first 500 consecutive HoLEP cases performed under the care of a single surgeon was analysed retrospectively. Urodynamic studies (UDS) did not play a role in the decision making process for those with UR.

Revealing Nuanced Relationships Among Cognitive Test Anxiety, Motivation, and Self-Regulation Through Curvilinear Analyses.

Student motivational profiles and self-regulated learning strategies are significant influences on overall academic success in university settings. Test anxiety has been repeatedly linked to maladaptive learning strategies and ineffective motivational frameworks. However, the results in the field have been inconsistent with respect to the precise interactions among these variables.

Accuracy of Nonexercise Prediction Equations for Assessing Longitudinal Changes to Cardiorespiratory Fitness in Apparently Healthy Adults: BALL ST Cohort.

Background Repeated assessment of cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) improves mortality risk predictions in apparently healthy adults. Accordingly, the American Heart Association suggests routine clinical assessment of CRF using, at a minimum, nonexercise prediction equations. However, the accuracy of nonexercise prediction equations over time is unknown.

A Comparison of Regularized Maximum-Likelihood, Regularized 2-Stage Least Squares, and Maximum-Likelihood Estimation with Misspecified Models, Small Samples, and Weak Factor Structure.

Several structural equation modeling estimation methods have recently been developed to alleviate problems associated with model misspecification. Two of the more popular such approaches are 2-stage least squares and regularization methods. Prior work examining the performance of these estimators has generally focused on problems with adequately sized samples and relatively large factor loadings.

Using Fit Statistic Differences to Determine the Optimal Number of Factors to Retain in an Exploratory Factor Analysis.

Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) is widely used by researchers in the social sciences to characterize the latent structure underlying a set of observed indicator variables. One of the primary issues that must be resolved when conducting an EFA is determination of the number of factors to retain. There exist a large number of statistical tools designed to address this question, with none being universally optimal across applications.